In food services, quality is associated with intrinsic aspects of the food (nutritional composition), safety (sanitary and hygienic conditions), service (customer-supplier relationship), and price. Sanitary and hygienic conditions have been widely studied and discussed as food safety factors, since foodborne illnesses are among the main causes of death in some countries.
Greater industrialization and opening of the markets to competition promoted many changes to the food sector, both with regard to production and marketing. After some hygiene-related events and environmental disasters that occurred in the end of the 1990s, a wave of food scandals – methanol in wine, salmonella in eggs, lead in powdered milk, benzene in water – increased concern for sanitary quality, expanding the concept of food safety. These incidents did not only increase consumer awareness of food safety, but also had immediate and severe economic repercussions in the countries involved.
Food sanitation should concern everyone since contaminated foods may cause serious health effects.
Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) is a set of regulations, codes and guidelines for the manufacture of certain items, including food products, beverages and materials that are in direct contact with foods to assure quality.
Good Manufacturing Practice is a critical prerequisite for the implementation of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), which is considered part of the measures required for food safety and a reference for the creation of laws that regulate on food production. Instead of detecting foodborne pathogenic microorganisms at the end of the production process, HACCP is effective because it minimizes contamination by introducing critical control points in the production process.
Globalization has encouraged consumers to demand better product quality as well as universal parameters to ensure this quality. Attributes such as hygiene, quality, sustainability and reliability have become essential for consumers’ decision on whether to purchase a product or service. To meet these demands, the productive sector felt the need to implement systems that improved quality monitoring, quality control and sanitation, and reduced environmental impact.
ISO standards are being used together with local standards since the former are acknowledged internationally and allow the comparison of studies from different countries.
ISO 9001:2015 covers the requirements for any QMS. Therefore, the standard can be implemented in every sector, including food sector. ISO 9001:2015 defines the guiding principles that can be used to create efficiencies by aligning and streamlining processes throughout the organization, in an effort to bring down costs, create new opportunities, meet regulatory requirements, and help organizations expand into new markets in which clients demand ISO 9001 certification (the last of which is increasingly crucial for businesses working in or with the public sector or serving as suppliers in automotive or private OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) scenarios).
ISO 14001 aims to provide a strategic approach for the organization’s environmental policy, plans and actions. One of its achievements is the establishment of a common reference for organizations to communicate about environmental management.
Implementation of ISO 22000 is one way to monitor food production. This standard is specific for the food chain and an excellent instrument for restaurants, as it allows production monitoring and introduces the concept of traceability.
It is fit for all organizations, regardless of size, and is critically important for companies that seek third-party acknowledgment or certification of their food safety management system.
ISO 45001 defines the requirements for an occupational Health and Safety Management System intended to improve employee safety, reduce risks and create better, healthier and safer workplace environments.
The emphasis of ISO 45001 is placed on the roles and responsibilities of top management. Although functional tasks may be passed on, the ultimate responsibility for implementing the correct procedures rests with top management. The standard summarizes the roles of top management as being: To create, orchestrate, maintain, monitor, develop and promote a management system that enforces a Health and Safety culture into a business’s everyday activities, and to ultimately create safe workplaces with fewer accidents and incidents.
ISO 9001 is a generic standard [5]. Therefore, the standard can be implemented in every sector, including food
And the Others ISO standard can apply as per their organization requirements like ISO 27001 for Information Security Management Systems, ISO 22301(BCM) etc.
